


Antiques

by songofsunset



Category: Hikaru no Go
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-01
Updated: 2018-04-01
Packaged: 2019-04-16 13:35:07
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 463
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14165964
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/songofsunset/pseuds/songofsunset
Summary: Hikaru tries to sell his grandfather's goban at a weird little antique store.





	Antiques

**Author's Note:**

> Written for SASO 2017, originally posted [here.](https://sportsanime.dreamwidth.org/21522.html?thread=9642514#cmt9642514)
> 
> Prompt: "AU where Sai owns an antique shop and Hikaru is his part timer"

Hikaru regretted entering the weird little antique shop almost as soon as the wooden chimes on the door jangled, but his mother wasn’t giving him his allowance any time soon, so he might as well just sell the goban he'd taken from his grandfather's storage and get it over with.   
  
The room was dark and clean and utterly crowded, full of tables and glass cases and wooden chests. Hikaru squinted at the price tag on a simple white bowl in the nearest case, and edged carefully away.  
  
“Hello?” Hikaru called, stepping around a grinning tanuki statue, looking around at pottery-filled alcoves and scroll-lined walls. “Is anyone- oh.”   
  
That kimono in the back of the store wasn’t on display.  
  
It was being worn by an actual person, a man with a weird hat and the longest hair Hikaru had ever seen, and Hikaru only restrained himself from flailing wildly because the consequences would be dire for his poor empty wallet.   
  
“Welcome to my humble shop,” the man said, with a nod and just a hint of a smile. “May I help you?”  
  
Hikaru shifted from one foot to another. “I want to, uh, sell this?” Hikaru said, hefting his grandfather’s goban, and the man’s smile widened into a grin.   
  
“Ah, what a fine old goban! Though if you would,” the man said, eyeing Hikaru’s bleached hair and scuffed sneakers, “where did a gentleman such as yourself acquire such a fine goban?”   
  
“Look,” said Hikaru, scowling in the general direction of the tanuki statue, which only seemed to mock him, “Does it matter? Do you want to buy it or not?”  
  
The man laughed. “Oh, I’d say that’s very relevant to our current discussion. But if you’d rather… that board is for Go. Do you know how to play?”  
  
Hikaru scowled, “I know what a goban is. And I bet I could kick your ass.”  
  
The man pulled a fan out of his sleeve to hide his smile “Then I’ll make a deal with you, Mr. Proprietor of Possibly Stolen Goods. Beat me at a game of Go and I’ll buy that board from you, no questions asked. But if you lose? You’ll return it to where it came from, with full apologies.”  
  
“Oh come on-“  
  
“Oh?” said the stranger, raising an eyebrow. “Should I call around to the other shops in the area and warn them to be on the lookout for a young troublemaker? Or are you scared to play a board game with a humble shopkeeper?”  
  
Hikaru scowled, but marched over to the man, placing the goban down in front of him with perhaps more force than was entirely necessary. “Fine,” he said, “I’ll beat you at a dumb board game. How hard can it be?”  
  
Behind his fan, the man smiled.

**Author's Note:**

> To my mind, the game turns into an informal teaching session culminating in Sai decimating Hikaru, and then Sai demands proof that Hikaru properly returned the goban. When Hikaru brings his very unenthusiastic selfie with his grandfather Sai mentions how much Hikaru had sucked at go, and Hikaru doesn't take kindly to being told he sucks at something, so he keeps showing up and demanding Sai play him and before Hikaru knows it he's working at an antique shop and also getting ready for the go pro exam. Akira's dad is a regular customer so Akira comes by a lot to pick up purchases maybe?
> 
> Hikaru's family is very confused but they invite Sai over for dinner sometimes
> 
> Also possibly Sai is in a bit of an xxxHolic Yuuko weird shopkeeper sort of situation??? we just don't know lol
> 
>  
> 
> ~~yes that is the flower bowl from that one chapter where they end up in an antique store why do you ask~~


End file.
